Informed decision-making for hotel revenue and development teams
In today’s highly competitive hospitality landscape, hoteliers are constantly searching for smarter ways to win market share. One of the most powerful, yet often under-leveraged, tools available to hotel chains is construction market data. Barbour ABI offers rich, real-time data that, when deployed effectively, can serve as a strategic advantage for both development and revenue teams alike.
1. Development Teams: Finding the Right Sites, at the Right Time
For development leaders, securing the best location isn’t just about geography, it’s about timing, context, and foresight. Barbour ABI tracks new construction projects across the UK with granular visibility into site locations, types of developments, clients & contractors, and timelines.
- Identify emerging hotbeds of activity: By filtering for sectors like commercial, residential, or mixed-use projects, development teams can pinpoint neighbourhoods primed for hotel demand, well before competitors.
- Understand project scale and partners: Knowing the size of a planned scheme or who’s involved (developers / owners) helps shape decisions around positioning, potential access, and corporate partnerships.
- Time investment decisions strategically: Development pipelines depend on aligning feasibility studies, brand planning, and investment with real-world data. With early warnings about upcoming developments, teams can fast-track opportunities with clarity and confidence.
Did you know? Many outline plans for mixed-use commercial developments often include planning for hospitality but do not yet have an incumbent. These developments are a rich seam of opportunity for hotel chains to get in 1st and tap into a ready-made revenue stream from the new destination.
2. Revenue Teams: Targeting Midweek Room Demand from Construction Spend
Let’s be honest: midweek occupancy can make or break a hotel’s bottom line. Construction brings in a steady stream of business travellers; site managers, project coordinators, contractors, often booking rooms near project locations for several nights at a time.
Did you know? Best estimates put the construction sector total spend on hotels at £2-4bn per annum in the UK! This is between 8 and 15% of the total market for hotel spend.
Barbour ABI’s platform enables revenue managers to:
- Run precise radial searches: Map your hotel’s location and see exactly which construction sites lie within, say, a 10-15 mile radius. Get structured data on the contractors, supply chains, project duration, and project values.
- Target outreach proactively: Armed with a list of nearby projects and their managers, your revenue teams can tailor corporate rates, bespoke packages, or flexible block room offers to meet site-specific needs.
- Drive sustained midweek occupancy: Construction sites represent dependable, long-stay bookings, especially during weekdays. By connecting early, you lock in consistent demand that rivals leisure or weekend drive.
3. Competitor Awareness: Staying Ahead of the Game
Both development and revenue teams benefit immensely from being informed about competitor activity, where rivals are building, who’s working with them, and how new sites might shift demand dynamics.
- Monitor competitor renovations or extensions: Barbour ABI flags projects such as refurbishments or expansions in the hospitality sector. If a neighbouring hotel is scaling up, your team can pre-emptively adjust pricing, promotions, or even guest messaging.
- Spot new entrants or chains with plans nearby: Are international or boutique brands moving into your core markets? Knowing where they plan to build allows you to reinforce loyalty campaigns or emphasize differentiating strengths.
- Plan defensively and offensively: Whether it’s reacting to a competitor’s upcoming hotel or targeting the same location for development, having project intel allows you to move with intent and anticipation.
Putting It All Together: Strategy in Motion
Use cases at a glance
- Development: Target growth hot-spots and strike early on new opportunities; analyse project scope and timeline.
- Revenue: Capture consistent midweek demand from construction related travel.
- Competitive Intelligence: Monitor rivals’ project plans and adjust strategy proactively.
Why it matters for modern hoteliers
- The construction industry is a dependable source of transient business, especially during the week.
- Staying informed gives you the luxury of lead time, planning and outreach before demand surges.
- A radial search tool around your assets makes location-based insights easy to act upon.
Summary
Barbour ABI’s construction data equips hotel chains with the insights needed to make informed decisions and react. Smarter, faster strategic behaviour. Whether that’s pinpointing future development opportunities, locking in reliable weekday room demand, or staying one step ahead of competitors through advanced planning.
- Development teams gain a clear window into emerging site opportunities, allowing for more targeted and timely site selection.
- Revenue teams unlock a consistent, high-yield demand stream by connecting with construction stakeholders early and strategically.
- Competitive intelligence keeps teams alert and responsive, knowing what’s planned around you helps mitigate surprises.
In such a tight, agile market, where every midweek booking counts, this kind of insight separates the tactical from the strategic. Barbour ABI isn’t just a data provider – it’s a force-multiplier for hotel chains looking to own their strategy and win the competitive edge in the construction sector and beyond.
See how the hotel industry is performing by region with our Sector Review, or book a call with me to find out more about how Barbour ABI can support your business.
